It is widely recognized that Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have served as a unique national asset for the initial development of minorities in the health professions. Although HBCUs have excelled at creating a nurturing educational environment, these institutions have historically lacked depth and breadth in their research infrastructure. The Atlanta University Center includes a consortium of HBCUs (ie Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM), Spelman College, Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University) that collectively educate one of the nation's largest populations of African-American students. The MSM is strategically poised to establish a vibrant, state-of-the-art, research environment that is intimately connected with this rich resource of talented minority students. In the pursuit of this objective, MSM used the HBCU Research Scientist/Center of Excellence Award (HBCU-COE) to recruit Dr. Gary H. Gibbons as the founding director of our Cardiovascular Research Institute (CVRI). In addition to broadening the scope of educational opportunities for minority students, this model program has established a center of excellence that is advancing the field of cardiovascular science and addressing ethnic disparities in cardiovascular health. Over the past five years, the CVRI has exceeded all expectations in rapidly establishing a robust research program that has gained national recognition based on its commitment to high quality science. The proposed renewal of the HBCU-COE award builds on this foundation by including an innovative set of initiatives that will further enhance the opportunities for faculty/students to become leading scientists. Our specific aims are: Aim I. To recruit and mentor a critical mass of talented young investigators capable of developing independent research programs within the collaborative setting of the CVRI Center of Excellence. Aim II. To establish enabling technologies, a research infrastructure and a collaborative research environment that supports cutting-edge cardiovascular research. Aim HI. To expand the ethnic diversity of the biomedical research community by creating a vibrant and nurturing intellectual environment conducive to research training for minority students.